The March for Ferguson: Houston

The notice of the March for Ferguson and Michael Brown came through Facebook. It would begin in a park near where I work so I thought I would take a look.

When I arrived, I thought there might actually be more media and cops than demonstrators but the crowd slowly swelled. A few people spoke in turn through a megaphone but the chants soon took over, “ Hands up, don’t shoot”.

The leaders began to move the crowd toward the nearest intersection cautioning that once out of the park, their actions would be illegal. As the protestors moved into the intersection, blocking traffic in every direction, the police established a perimeter but did not interfere. After about 10 minutes, we began to march. The police formed an escort, ahead, behind and on the side, lights flashing but no sirens and most importantly no interference. There was also a sizable contingent of Mounties always present in Houston at crowd events.
As the march moved away from the park and headed toward the University of Houston, I noticed that a reporter from the local CBS affiliate had embedded herself in the march with her camera crew. She stayed with us till the end. [cont’d.]

The March for Ferguson: Houston

The notice of the March for Ferguson and Michael Brown came through Facebook. It would begin in a park near where I work so I thought I would take a look.

When I arrived, I thought there might actually be more media and cops than demonstrators but the crowd slowly swelled. A few people spoke in turn through a megaphone but the chants soon took over, “ Hands up, don’t shoot”.

The leaders began to move the crowd toward the nearest intersection cautioning that once out of the park, their actions would be illegal. As the protestors moved into the intersection, blocking traffic in every direction, the police established a perimeter but did not interfere. After about 10 minutes, we began to march. The police formed an escort, ahead, behind and on the side, lights flashing but no sirens and most importantly no interference. There was also a sizable contingent of Mounties always present in Houston at crowd events.
As the march moved away from the park and headed toward the University of Houston, I noticed that a reporter from the local CBS affiliate had embedded herself in the march with her camera crew. She stayed with us till the end. (more…)